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Background: PetMeds wanted to conduct a direct marketing campaign which would combine the use of their website and direct mail, as well as the mass production of their catalog. They drove pet lovers to their website by hosting a “Cutest Pet” competition, where interested participants submitted their name, e-mail address, their pet’s name and breed, as well as a photo of their pet.

The Challenge: PetMeds wanted to use the information gathered from their competition to mail their catalog to more than 2 million pet lovers across the country. They believed that by customizing their catalog to seem like it was especially designed for the participant’s pet, it would get a better response rate than typical mass marketing campaigns. This was not your ordinary catalog. It had features of both a mass-produced catalog – 28 common pages of text – and a personalized catalog – digital and variable data on the front and back covers.

Not Just Your Ordinary Catalog:

Variable Aspects:

Front outside cover featured the pet’s name and breed, pictures of most poplar items (if new customer) or items most commonly ordered by customer (if existing customer)

Back inside cover read, “How is Pet’s Name Doing?” We want to keep Pet’s Name Healthy!” and listed common problems and common medications associated with that breed, indicating the page number that these medicines could be found on.

Back outside cover read, “The Single Best thing you can do for Pet’s Name…” and recommend a pet food.

The back outside cover also had the name and address of the pet owner, with mailing indicia.

Non-Variable Apects:

The catalog featured 28 pages of text which would be common to all 2 million pieces. It needed to be saddle stitched, mailed all over the United States to the hottest climates first, and then the cooler climates, so that consumers could order their flea and tick medication in time for summer

The Solution: This was the scenario that AGS Maryland, a CGX company, was faced with. They partnered with fellow sister-companies McKay Press, Veritas, and Courier Printing to get the job done. To complete this task, AGS, McKay, and Veritas digitally printed the covers with software designed by Xerox to combine the variable data and print on an IGEN. They then shipped the covers to Courier Printing, where we sorted the mailing files into 2 mailings, based on the climate issue. Courier printed the text on the full-web press, saddle-stitched the covers to the text, and handled all the mailing, making sure the catalogs got out on time for flea and tick season!

The Result: PetMeds was thrilled with their catalog. More than 2 million pet lovers, many of whom were new to PetMeds, received a catalog especially designed for their beloved pet. PetMeds received a great response rate and is planning on doing other customized catalog mailings in the future.

Background: Athlon is a Nashville-based publishing company with two major areas of interest: Publishing and Sports Marketing. Athlon publishes 13 preseason sports annuals covering professional and college athletics, and provides a marketing program that includes a handbook that provides team-by-team previews, predictions, and schedules. They also offer a newsletter that has current highlights and keeps you updated on sports news. Athlon covers football, baseball, basketball, golf and auto racing throughout the year.

The Challenge: Athlon has hundreds of handbook customers across the United States. Each business (customer) has their cover customized to go along with the common text. Athlon needed a printing partner who could customize their handbook covers, bind them to the common text, and ship small quantities of many different customized versions. Athlon also needed someone who could print their sports newsletters, which also have many versions and different folding specifications, and need to ship in less than 24 hours from receiving the files.

The Solution: Courier mass produces the common handbook and newsletter texts at the beginning of each sports season. With the handbooks, Courier prints the customized covers, binds them to the inventoried text and ships them to each customer. With the newsletter, Courier prints the customized text on the pre-printed inventoried shells, folds and ships them per Athlon’s specifications. Courier has an “expert” who oversees the newsletter imprinting. He makes sure that we print the appropriate amount for each version. He counts, collates, and slip-sheets the runs, making sure that they are grouped in the correct run order to go to the folder, and then to shipping.

The Result: Courier is able to produce Athlon’s handbooks and newsletters in the most efficient manner, saving them time, money, and headaches. We take great pride in providing them with the quick turns-arounds and customized pieces that they desire for their customers.

Background: Tursack Incorporated, a Pennsylvania based Consolidated Graphics Company, and Courier Printing have been working together to produce Bank of America’s World Points Catalogs since 2003.

The Challenge: Bank of America was looking for a printing company large enough to handle their World Points Rewards Catalogs. Bank of America wanted to print over one million World Points Catalogs quarterly. Each quarterly issue has been between 4 and 9 versions, saddle stitched with inserts, mails, and has numerous drop shipment locations across the country.

The Solution: While maintaining all content, Courier reduced the size of the World points Catalog to a letter rate allowing Bank of America to achieve 43% postage savings. Courier Printing produces the Rewards Catalogs efficiently on their M600 web press by printing and folding the text inline. The smaller size fits the 24 page press configuration perfectly. Once the text prints, Courier inkjets the catalogs as they saddle stitch.

The Result: The past fiscal year, Tursack’s Bank of America World Points business contributed over $1,530,000 in sales to Courier Printing.

Background: Alto Shaam, a Wisconsin-based Food service equipment and supply company, was founded by Jerry Maahs in 1955. Maahs, after spending 13 years in the restaurant industry, began Alto Shaam with the intention of developing solutions for the equipment problems of the food service operator. Today Alto Shaam provides a wide variety of cooking and holding ovens, fryers, convection ovens, and quick chillers to restaurants around the country.

The Challenge: Alto Shaam approached Consolidated Graphics with the desire to print their Price List Catalog in a manner that would have as little negative impact on the environment as possible. Their catalog would have 178 pages, print four color process throughout, and have a print order of 25,000 perfect bound books.

The Solution: Print the Price List Catalog on all Forest Stewardship Council certified paper. The FSC develops standards that protect biodiversity, water quality, wildlife species and timber resources of our forests. FSC paper is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, which means that the paper came from a properly managed forest and was milled at an environmentally friendly paper plant.

The Result: We printed the Alto Shaam Price List on 52,900 pounds of Forest Stewardship Council certified paper. That’s 52,000 pounds of paper that was milled in an environmentally friendly manner! If you would like to get more information on FSC certified paper, please go to http://www.fscus.org.

Fun Fact: Did you know Courier Printing was one of the first printers in Nashville to jump on board with FBC certification? We are Rainforest Alliance Certified as well, so we can add the Rainforest Alliance certification seal in conjunction with our FSC logos onto your printed materials!

“Badges? We don’t need no stinkin’ badges!” is a memorable quote from the movie The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. While some might show great hostility towards personal identification tags or badges, the general consensus is that they can be extremely useful.

Choosing the right badge though depends on multiple factors. Will the badge be for short-term or a one-time use or does it need to be durable enough to withstand the wear of time. A convention name tag badge with a clear plastic badge holder or a simple label may be good enough to accomodate the one-time use. These are simple and inexpensive. For more durable badges however, you may need to consider a vinyl badge holder or investing in a thick plastic laminated lanyard.

Badges can be equipped with magnetic strips for instances where greater employee monitoring or security is needed. They can also be die cut into a specific shape of your choosing. Simply stated, there is a badge option out there for just about any need.

To browse an assortment of badge, tag and id cards available, check out the links below:

I ran across this YouTube video that I thought was interesting called, The Joe Show. The show focuses on creative ways that people can use promotional products to advertise. I have included this most recent episode above but there are other episodes as well that you can check out by visiting YouTube and search for The Joe Show.

This episode focuses on promotional uses for disposable cameras. Disposable cameras are affordable, can be branded for your company or customer and are an excellent item for a large event. To learn more about the many types of disposable cameras available check out the Courier Promotional storefront and search “disposable cameras” or click here.

Everyone recognizes the need to incorporate Earth friendly products into our lives. Tote bags have become one of the most popular of these new environmentally friendly products. Not only are tote bags made with natural and recyclable materials, every time they are used they help the environment.

Step into just about any grocery store and a few other retailers and you are sure to find a store branded tote bag. These shopping bags help eliminate the use of paper and plastic bags, they are more durable and they reinforce brand identity. The fact that you can get them in all sorts of sizes and that they’re light-weight only increases their potential use outside of traditional shopping (ex – I use a large Dick’s Sporting Goods tote bag to store and recycle plastics at home). All the major retailers have them and these tote bags are out there sitting in millions of peoples homes with a company logo right on the front of them waiting to be seen (reinforcing that people need to visit that store).

You will also find tote bags being used at conventions, conferences and trade shows where they are an excellent way for someone to carry around the many materials and other promotional items that they pick up at various company displays and breakout sessions. Other uses include teacher/student bags as well as some of the smaller totes that make for great lunch bags.

The roll-up tote bag (featured above) is an especially unique option as this gives the end user an easy and convenient way to size down the tote and keep it with them at all times. This bag has all the benefits of a traditional tote bag and more. I can’t tell you how many times I’ll make a quick or unexpected trip to a store and all three of the tote bags I own are just sitting at home in a closet. The ability to have one with you at all times in a work bag, suitcase, gym bag or purse (as is the case with the roll-up tote bag) can resolve this problem.

As tote bags increase in popularity, expect to see more designer and other specialty, custom bags. It is only a matter of time before people start making fashion statements with their tote bag. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see small retailers giving them away for free upon a customers entrance into their store. This makes for a great promotion and also serves as an enticement to buy something as our brains are triggered towards putting things into empty bags.